The opening scene shows Dexter Haven (Cary Grant) walking out on Tracy Lord (Katharine Hepburn) and though there is no dialogue the physical acting is more than enough to indicate the two are married but clearly not for long. Based on many examples I’ve seen in older films (and this one is no exception) back in the day, the true way to tell if a man was serious about separating from his wife was to leave with his golf clubs. As they are parting ways Dexter motions as if he is going to hit Tracy but then just lightly nudges her and walks away, though Tracy falls to the ground as though she has just been struck- I’m glad I paid attention to this scene because it shows up later on the quiz.
Once the dialogue kicks in we find out that Tracy is a famous socialite who is planning to marry again, this time it is to a more “working class man” named George. Although George’s introduction includes the revelation that he is not well versed in equestrienne practices and that he used to work a laborious job that involved him getting dirty he is clearly no “man of the people.” He is actually running for elected office and expresses a vocal support of the press’ interest in their engagement as a possible momentum boost for his upcoming campaign.
Though their wedding is supposed to be a private event, every journalist in the northeast is vying for exclusivity rights to covering it. Rather than a respectable news outlet, the nod goes to “Spy” magazine, whose editor has basically blackmailed his way into the wedding. A reporter, Macaulay Connor (Jimmy Stewart) and photographer/platonic friend Elizabeth are assigned to the story and arrive at the Lord House first to pose as family friends, however Katharine calls them out almost immediately and while she is annoyed by their presence she allows them to stay because of the dirt their editor supposedly has on her family.
Soon Dexter is back in the picture (as he is also at the mercy of the “Spy” editor) he elects to stay for the wedding, largely due to the fact that Tracy’s mother and sister Dinah still adore him. Dinah’s attempts to both outshine her older sister as well as be the center of attention for all the new guests in the house makes for some of the funniest moments in the movie. The little girl who plays her (Virginia Weidler) has all of Katharine Hepburn’s mannerisms down cold and passes as a miniature version of Tracy perfectly. Not only is this good acting but it also gives the viewer a glimpse at what Tracy was probably like at that age and presumably always has been like. Though it is revealed that Dexter’s alcoholism was the main detriment to his and Tracy’s marriage, it is obvious that Tracy is not perfect either.
The scenes involving Dexter, Tracy and Macaulay all reinforce the importance of the film’s ensemble casting approach as the three work very well together and these scenes more than any others give us important insight into all the characters in a short amount of time. Dexter and Tracy both paint a generally negative picture of the other to Macaulay and, depending on how one retorts, denies or confirms what the other says, the more we learn what probably is and isn’t true about the characters.
One sequence in the film where this is particularly important centers around Dexter telling Macaulay about how Tracy’s life of privilege has prevented her from having a realistic view of the world or the ability to experience life the way regular people have. He explains that no matter what the circumstance she has always had someone around to “soften the blow” for her and thus shelter her from any kind of negativity or hardship. Despite all the witty repartee the two exchange, these comments in particular seem to genuinely hurt Tracy.
”I thought our marriage was for life, but the nice Judge gave me a full pardon” (Tracy Lord, “The Philadelphia Story”)
Now, here is where we revisit the opening divorce scene: not only does Dexter talk about people in Tracy’s life figuratively softening the blow, but we realize that this expression even applies in the literal sense as Dexter decided against actually striking her in a moment of extreme anger. In a sense he is just as guilty as everyone else of ensuring Tracy’s life is relatively insulated. More to the point though, when Tracy physically reacts the way she does to Dexter’s powder-puff shove, it indicates that she is overly dramatic and does not take even the slightest amount of harshness very well. Dinah also confirms this when she hears that Dexter is coming to the house and asks matter-of-factly if he is going to punch out Tracy again. Obviously she has been embellishing the details of their break-up.
Strangely enough, from all this bitterness a love-triangle sort of story (or whatever a situation involving a woman having feelings for 3 men would be called… love cube?) develops. Tracy finds herself fascinated by Macaulay, rediscovering old feelings for Dexter (which first manifest themselves in a scene where she talks about the boat they spent their honeymoon on-leading to some incredible repressed emotive acting on Katharine Hepburn’s part) and struggling with her feelings about George. To complicate matters even more, it slowly begins to creep out that Macaulay and Elizabeth’s friendship may be more than just that. First when Macaulay dramatically overreacts at learning Elizabeth is divorced and later by Elizabeth’s body language as she silently recognizes the chemistry between Macaulay and Tracy.
The introduction of Tracy’s philandering father cements the level of wackiness and eccentricity that takes place at the Lord house. The openness of how the family discusses his marital indiscretions only fuels the possibility of grade-A tabloid gossip that could be drawn from the lives of the Lord family, however the more layers are peeled back the more human and flawed they clearly are and thus the less predatory Macaulay seems about the assignment and just like that he becomes admirable.
It seems as though Tracy has made her decision as to who she truly loves when she goes swimming with Macaulay after the two have spent a night drinking and he subsequently carries her to her bedroom. However it is revealed in the morning that the events of the evening were actually harmless and brought the two of them together in a more meaningful way than attraction. Despite the benignity of their activities George confronts Tracy moments before the wedding demanding an explanation and an apology. Citing not only their differences as people (which emerge more and more over the course of the movie) but George’s clear lack of trust as well as the overwhelming evidence that George is more concerned with his image than he is their relationship Tracy abruptly ends their engagement.
That’s one suitor down.
Frantic over the sudden change of plans and the realization that there is a virtual mob waiting for her wedding to start Tracy decides she needs to ensure that some kind of wedding takes place. Macaulay offers his hand and hastily proposes to Tracy which she dismisses comedically but still compassionately- much to Elizabeth’s relief and seemingly even Macaulay’s since the two seem to have something of a rediscovery of each other at this point.
That’s two suitors down.
Motivated not only by their reignited feelings for each other but also Dexter’s admission to Tracy that he now sees her as a real person and not an elevated, untouchable deity, the two are able to fall back in love and give their marriage a serious second chance. In a display of true class and non-hostility Macaulay offers to be Dexter’s best man. In the final lines of dialogue it is even suggested that tensions may soothe between Tracy and her estranged father. For lack of a more appropriate cliché, it appears alls-well-that-ends-well.
In a very similar way to “Bringing up Baby,” “The Philadelphia Story” maintains an excellent balance of depth and light-heartedness. It NEVER takes itself very seriously but successfully depicts multiple facets of personalities. I also have to believe this is one of the earliest examples of the eventual decline of journalistic standards in this country; otherwise it is simply eerily prophetic. There is scathing social commentary that runs throughout without ever having to be harsh or damning, particularly towards matters of class and celebrity. The notion of the media building people up only to tear them down is ever-present, as is the blithe unawareness people in the upper-reaches of society have about their public perception. “The Philadelphia Story” never has to be vicious or catty, nor does it have to make the characters who must undergo change in order to become better people look foolish or ridicule them.
Perez Hilton could learn a lot from this film.
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